If you've opted to have your balcony's stainless steel balustrade filled with glass panels, then you may have imagined how lovely it would be to sit on your balcony and have a clear view out. Unfortunately, the reality of a glass balustrade in a high-rise can be a little different.
Your apartment complex may well hire daredevil abseiling cleaners to clean your windows and balcony glass periodically but, between their visits, your glass may get to look grubby and murky. Plus, while cleaning the inside of your balcony's glass is easy enough, you may not want to risk life and limb by leaning over your balcony to clean the outside of your glass. Is self-cleaning balcony glass the answer?
What Is Self-Cleaning Glass?
Self-cleaning glass has been specially treated so that it can deal with dirt and debris itself. While it might be nice to imagine that your glass has little elves in it that polish things up, this is really all about coatings that are added to the glass when it is manufactured.
So, for example, self-cleaning glass is usually treated with a coating that uses light to break down dirt that sticks to the glass. Rather than allowing dirt to stick fast, this coating deconstructs the dirt, some of which may fall away naturally. Any residual dirt is dealt with by rainwater. Typically, the self-cleaning glass coating doesn't allow rainwater to fall on the glass in drops but encourages it to run off cleanly and evenly, taking more dirt and debris with it and making it less likely that the glass will show streaks. Technically, this should work with regular dirt and dust and with other glass problems such as bird droppings.
What If You Don't Get Much Rain?
Self-cleaning glass needs light and water to work properly. If you don't have a lot of rain, you may notice that your glass doesn't look as clean as it might, and you may have to wait for the next downpour before the glass clears dirt off itself fully.
Tip: If you're short on rain and your glass is looking a little lack-lustre, you can try putting some water in a clean spray bottle and spraying it down the outside of the glass. You should only do this if you can do it safely — if you lean too far out over your balcony, you could risk a fall. It may also be wise to warn your downstairs neighbours if you do this, so they can prepare for any water spilling down on to their balconies.
To find out more about the benefits of using self-cleaning glass on your stainless steel balcony balustrade, talk to local professionals like those found at Tarosa Stairs Pty Ltd.
